Events

Estonia and Lithuania ratify UPC Agreement

06 September 2017

The ratifications by Estonia and Lithuania are a positive sign that political momentum is still behind the UPC, even with the many setbacks the system has faced. Importantly, Estonia has already notified its consent to the UPC provisional application phase (PAP) and it is hoped that Lithuania will now also consent to the PAP. The PAP is required for certain administrative matters, such as the recruitment of judges, to start before the UPC opens its doors.

One of the recent delays in the UPC system has been the challenge to the German ratification of the UPC in the German Constitutional Court. The reasons behind the challenge have now been made public and published on the Kluwer Patent Blog here. In essence, the challenge relates to German ratification of the UPC leading to an unlawful surrender of sovereignty. It is hoped that the challenge can be heard soon so that there is some more certainty over start of the UPC.

The challenge also appears not to have stopped the EPO publishing a useful guide to the Unitary Patent that can be found here.